1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to telecommunications systems. More particularly, the present invention relates to an advanced intelligent network system for facilitating troubleshooting problems related to provisioning telephone services and features.
2. Background of the Invention
In the present telecommunications infrastructure, subscribers are provided a wide range of improved services and special features in addition to regular plain old telephone service (“POTS”). Examples of such enhancements include caller-id, call-waiting, automatic call-back, message waiting, anonymous call rejection, automatic re-call, and the like. Such enhancements are provided through a complex set of interactions between the various network elements. The complexity of the interactions is greatly increased when a single subscriber utilizes multiple features.
When a subscriber subscribes to a new service, one or more of the following actions may be executed: an AIN trigger may be placed on the subscriber's line at a service switching point (“SSP”); a database on a service control point (“SCP”) may be updated with additional information; and/or a database on a service node (“SN”) may be updated. When a new service or feature is being offered system-wide, the SN or SCP may require new programming logic, or AIN triggers may be provisioned globally on the SSP. Because of the complexity and large number of combinations of data and programming options, problems sometimes arise with a subscriber's telephone service.
When a subscriber reports such problems to a service center, diagnosis and correction using conventional systems and methods is a multi-step process. A trouble ticket is created and assigned to a maintenance technician. The maintenance technician must login to the subscriber's SSP to analyze the settings on the subscriber's line. The technician must then diagnose the problem and implement corrective actions. Finally, the technician must verify that the problem is resolved, either by testing the subscriber's line or by asking the subscriber to test the line.
In conventional systems, access to switching equipment is generally restricted to special terminals physically located on the telephone service provider's (“telco's”) premises. In some instances, the telco may allow remote terminal access via a secure access interface. Furthermore, conventional switching systems generally have only a limited number of ports available for technicians logging in. Thus, when a technician logs into a switching system to diagnose a single subscriber's problem, a valuable interface port is tied-up. This limits the number of ports available to diagnose and resolve any problems affecting users system-wide.
Additionally, telecommunication system vendors typically provide rudimentary user interfaces with their systems. Thus, using conventional methods, maintenance technicians must have the specialized skills and knowledge to effectively interact with the switching systems. Such specialized skills and knowledge are generally vendor-specific, making it more difficult for the technician to diagnose and correct problems when systems from, multiple vendors are deployed in the telco's network.
There is therefore a need for a system and method allowing a technician to perform tasks with telephone line settings without the need for logging into the telco's systems. More specifically, there is a need for a system and method allowing a technician to retrieve or modify the telephone line settings on the switch through a telephone call. Further there is a need for automated diagnosis of common problems associated with telephone services and features.